Introducing a New Feature: "tS' Weekly Top Five"

Every Sunday night or Monday morning, I'll be posting my picks for the top five teams in the nation. There is a very scientific approach I take to these rankings, and it is probably the most objective poll in the nation. These are not the petty opinions of a wannabe sports expert. You can take these rankings to the bank, and show them to your friends who work there.

#5 - Xavier: The Musketeers have won 11 straight in the competitive Atlantic 10 Conference. If you don't know a lot about this team, you will soon. Xavier is destined to become a media darling as the Tournament approaches.

#4 - Tennessee: I haven't drunk the kool-aid yet on this team. Their recent wins against Memphis and Kentucky were by close margins, and in between those victories they lost to Vanderbilt. At times, they are explosive; but at other times they look unfocused and impatient.

#3 - UCLA: After today's grind out win at Arizona, the Bruins are now 8-1 in Pac-10 road games. They have one of the toughest defenses in the nation, but their offense has had stretches where scoring is a struggle. Big game this Thursday at home against Stanford.

#2 - North Carolina: UNC has won 6 in a row since their home loss to Duke, including nail-biter at Virginia and a come-from-behind win at Boston College yesterday. Ty Lawson had only 1 field goal in his comeback Saturday, but he did lead the team in assists with 5, and added 2 steals.

#1 - Louisville: Louisville is the hottest team in the Big East, and maybe the country. They've won 9 in a row; a winning streak that includes victories over Georgetown and Notre Dame at home and Marquette and Pittsburgh on the road. They have a chance to win the Big East regular season title with a win this Saturday at Georgetown.